John is incoherent, Alison is excited, and Liz is romantic.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Abigail Nussbaum
Ali Baker Brooks
Andy Openshaw
Chris Garcia
Claire Brialey
David Salter
Ed Morland
Farah Mendlesohn
Irwin Hirsh
Jonny Baddeley
Neil Ottenstein
Roseanna Pendlebury
We also heard from:
Fiona Moore, Ivan Sinha
Readers’ recommendations
Best Novel
Private Rites by Julia Armfield
I’m Afraid You’ve Got Dragons by Peter S Beagle
Metal from Heaven by August Clarke
In Universes by Emet North
The West Passage by Jared Pechaček
Three Eight One by Aliya Whiteley
Someone You Can Build a Nest in By John Wiswell
Best Dramatic Presentation (Long Form)
Deadpool and Wolverine
Tim Travers & the Time Travelers Paradox
Best Game or Interactive Work:
Tactical Breach Wizards
Best Fancast
Eight Days of Diana Wynne Jones by Emily Tesh and Rebecca Fraimow
Lady Eve’s Last Con by Rebecca Fraimow
Astounding Award
The End of Nobility by Michael Green
Briardene Books
Preorders for Colourfields by Paul Kincaid are now open!
Eastercon 2025: Reconnect in Belfast
Picks
John: Sliding Doors
Alison: Three Men in Orbit by Sandra Bond
Liz: Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean
Credits
Cover art: “Availability Flowchart” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A flowchart entitled “How to meet John, Alison and/or Liz at Eastercon”. The boxes culminate in “console yourself with Octothorpe 127”, and the various options are listed below, but the original file is here in case that’s more helpful to the partially sighted.
How to meet John, Alison and/or Liz at Eastercon
Are you going to Reconnect?
Of course!/Not sure
Oh go on it will be a laugh
Oh all right then/No…
Are they in the bar?
Yes!
I can’t see them
Are you quite sure? Check again
Oh wait… there they are
No sign
Is there another bar?
Yes!
Nope
Are they on programme?
Yes!
No
Wait till the moderator asks for questions
But it’s Octothorpe Live!
Is your joke very funny?
Obviously!
Excellent! Good to know.
COME AND SAY HELLO
until then…
Are they asleep or on the loo?
No, they look chill
Er, yes?
Oh, that’s a shame
Console yourself with Octothorpe 127
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
--------
45:14
126: I’ve Read Some Novels
John is a thief, Alison plays games, and Liz is bullied.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: None
Letters of comment
Andreas Davour
Bella Garcia
Constanze Hoffman
Farah Mendlesohn
Jonathan Cowie
June Young
Mike Scott
Neil Ottenstein
Raj
Tammy Coxen
Zoe O’Connell
We also heard from Bridget Bradshaw, Colin Harris, Meg MacDonald, and Shi Lala
Fan funds
The 2025 TAFF race has begun
Zi Graves, Mikołaj Kowalewski, Jan Vaněk jr.
CUFF comes to an end
Fowler Award
Hugo Awards
2025 spreadsheet of doom
Novels
T**he Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
The Sentence by Gautam Bhatia
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
The Life Impossible by Matt Haig
Jumpnauts by Hao Jingfang
The Siege of Burning Grass by Premee Mohamed
Alien Clay by Adrian Tchaikovsky
House of Open Wounds by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Absolution by Jeff Vandermeer
We Are All Ghosts in the Forest by Lorraine Wilson
Novellas
A Mourning Coat by Alex Jeffers
North Continent Ribbon by Ursula Whitcher
Short Stories
Grottmata by Thomas Ha
Five Views of the Planet Tartarus by Rachael K Jones
Related Works
Track Changes: Selected Reviews **by Abigail Nussbaum
Speculative Whiteness: Science Fiction and the A**lt-Right by Jordan S. Carroll
Series
The Horus Heresy
The Southern Reach
The Tyrant Philosophers
Graphic Stories
Warp Your Own Way by Ryan North and Chris Fenoglio
Abigail Nussbaum’s review at Strange Horizons
Dramatic Presentations
All of Us Strangers
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
I Saw the TV Glow
Late Night with the Devil
My Old Ass
A Quiet Place: Day One
The Substance
Timestalker
Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot
Games
Tabletop
Arcs
City of Six Moons
Mothership
Undaunted 2200: Callisto
Video
Animal Well
Caves of Qud
Dragon Age: The Veilguard
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdo**m
Slice and Dice 3.0
Star Wars: Outlaws
Tale of the Golden Idol
UFO50
Other
Bridge Command
Poems
Sandra Bond
Fan categories
Artists
Alison Scott
España Sheriff
Podcasts
Fanac Fan History Zooms
Going Rogue
Hugo, Girl!
A Meal of Thorns
Writers
Camestros Felapton
Ersatz Culture
Roseanna Pendlebury
Fanzines
Ancillary Review of Books
Banana Wings
Ornithopter
Unofficial Hugo Book Club
Debut authors
Moniquill Blackgoose
[Alison did not write any of her selections into the show notes and I was sorely tempted not to go through and write them all down for her but I did it for you, listener. I did it for you—John]
Picks [isn’t this a whole episode of picks?—Liz]
John: Earthborne Rangers
Alison: The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom
Liz: Horizon Zero Dawn
Sorry Mark
Credits
Cover art: “Waffle of comment” by Bella Garcia
Alt text: A picture of a Belgian waffle that looks like an octothorpe, on a white background, with the words “Octothorpe 126” above and “now with added waffle” below.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
--------
1:00:20
125: I’m Physically Present in This Hotel Room
John is travelling, Alison is coding, and Liz is faithful.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Death (chapter 6)
Letters of comment
Chris Garcia
The Beef and Dairy Network Podcast
Jt
Raj
Rotsler Award
España Sheriff is this year’s winner
Seattle 2025
Virtual Business Meeting announcement
Reportage on File 770
Unofficial WSFS Business Meeting Discord
Upcoming Worldcons
Vince Docherty reports from Smofcon 41
There are many links to convention bid websites contained within
Montréal are continuing for 2027, but Tel Aviv have suspended
Conventions on cruise ships
BGG@SEA
JoCo Cruise
Vanessa May
Vanessa was an integral part of the very beginning of Glasgow 2024
Picks
John: EXIT: The Game: Advent Calendar: The Missing Hollywood Star
Alison: Advent of Code
Liz: The Muppet Christmas Carol
Credits
Cover art: “Christmas Hats” by Alison Scott
Alt text: John wears an Octothorpe Christmas jumper and a green and red hat with elf ears, Alison wears a red Christmas jumper and a moose/reindeer hat, and Liz wears a blue jumper and a Christmas tree hat. The words “Octothorpe 125” appear at the top in a Christmassy font that looks like it has snow on the letters.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
--------
53:36
124: The Third D Isn’t What You Think
John is horrified, Alison is spelunking, and Liz is detecting.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode:
Letters of comment
Ali Baker Brooks
Andrew Hogg
4D Golf
Braid
Archipelacon 2
Caroline Mullan
Chris Garcia
Some accusations against Ekpeki have been disproved
Farah Mendlesohn
Ivan Sinha
Jonny Baddeley
June Young
Aurora Australis Alerts
Aurora Now
AuroraWatch UK
SpaceWeatherLive
MonkeyKing
Roseanna Pendlebury
Shia Lia
Tommy Ferguson
Reconnect
Upcoming conventions
Eastercon 2026: Iridescence at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole
Bid chaired by Phil Dyson
Eastercon 2027: Glasgow
Bid chaired by Alan Fleming and David Bamford
Eastercon 2028: Gateshead?
Novacon 2025
Conrunner 2026
To be chaired by Esther MacCallum-Stewart in February
WisCONline 2025
Edmonton 2030
Picks
John: Mothership
Mothership Month
Alison: Caves of Qud
Liz: Rise of the Golden Idol
(Sorry that they’re all games, Mark)
Credits
Cover art: “Ohmudillo” by Sophie van Setten
Alt text: The Glasgow 2024 logo drawn in pencils and crayon, but across the middle there is a segmented creature with eight eyes and mandibles. At the top, the words “Octothorpe 124” appear in blue.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
--------
47:48
123: Infinite Amount of Annual Leave
John is going to Seattle, Alison is going to the Åland Islands, and Liz is going to Belfast.
An uncorrected transcript of this episode is available here. Please email your letters of comment to [email protected], join our Facebook group, and tag @OctothorpeCast (on X or on Mastodon or on Bluesky) when you post about the show on social media.
Content warnings this episode: Money, grim darkness
Belfast Eastercon
Seattle 2025
Archipelacon 2
Back to Our Futures
The Dark Room
Liz’s Adrian Tchaikovsky scoop
Edmonton Worldcon bid
Picks
John: Wrath and Glory
Alison: Timestalker
Liz: The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett
Goodie from Goodreads
Credits
Cover art: “Fully Caffeinated” by Alison Scott
Alt text: A coffee stain on a piece of paper on which are written the words “Octothorpe 123” and “fully caffineated”.
Theme music: “Fanfare for Space” by Kevin MacLeod (CC BY 4.0)
New Zealand